Deep Magic
by LonelyWriter42
Summary: Morgan Pendragon was not amused. His parent's didn't get that their younger two children did not understand that they were not supposed to use magic around Aunt Megan. After House of Many Ways.


Deep Magic

Author: LonelyWriter42

Summary: Morgan Pendragon was not amused. His parent's didn't get that their younger two children did not understand that they were not supposed to use magic.

Disclaimer: I do not own Howl's Moving Castle, Castle in the Air, or House of Many Ways, they belong to Diana Wynne Jones.

...

Morgan Pendragon was not amused. He stood glaring at his Aunt Megan, his father's sister, as she glared right back. The only reason he was even here was because his favorite aunt, Lettie, his mother's sister, was busy helping her husband, the Royal Wizard Suliman, who Morgan usually called Uncle Ben unless he had done something wrong work on some special project for the King of Ingary. His other aunt, Martha, had so many children of her own to look after his parents had thought it best that they stay with Megan. But that was only after a long argument in which his mother turned his father into a toad and sat on him for a while, did she finally agree that one night with Megan and her family wasn't so bad.

Only, Sophie Pendragon didn't know that her younger two children did not get it that they were not supposed to use magic around Aunt Megan and this was the reason she was standing there, glaring at her brother's eldest child.

"Morgan Jenkins," Megan began in a voice that could almost put his mother's angry voice to shame. "Would you care to explain to me what in the world happened?"

Morgan glanced over his shoulder at his sister, Tegan, who was holding their two-year-old brother, Bryn. Of course the four-year-old wasn't doing a great job keeping her younger brother under control but at least he was too busy trying to escape her arms to conjure anything else. His eyes slid back to his aunt's as he surveyed the damage done. Neil, their cousin, was there on the ground a croaking frog while his aunt's beloved show dog was now plastered to the ceiling with green goop. And if that was not enough a meadow of bluebells like the ones that grew in "uncle" Abdullah's garden had sprang up through the carpet and made it smell as if the three children were back in their castle and aunt Megan's house was only a dream.

"I don't know," Morgan said in a mock outraged tone. "Why do you always assume that I've done something wrong when something like this happens?" He knew that his aunt would not buy that explanation but it was only a decoy anyway so he could think up a better one. Sometimes being the son of the Royal Wizard and a very powerful Witch had its downsides.

"I think," he said slowly, "That when we were playing outside Bryn got the frog and was playing with it then you called us in for lunch and none of us realized that he still had the frog." His aunt raised an eyebrow at this.

"Oh, really?" She glanced up at the ceiling. "And how did that happen?" She asked, pointing at the dog.

"Oh, simple, really," Morgan said offhandedly. His Aunt Martha's children were forever getting themselves into the biggest of trouble and he had spent enough time around them to have come up with some good excuses of his own. "The dog wanted to eat the frog."

"That is your explanation?" Aunt Megan's eyebrow twitched. "It does not account for the fact the dog is on the ceiling."

"Oh, the frog did it," Morgan lied smoothly. It was a bad habit that his father had helped him cultivate and his mother was forever rolling her eyes at her eldest child. "You see, when the dog tried to bite it the frog let out a gush of frog goop and the dog was so scared of it, it leapt right out of its skin and up onto the ceiling."

Aunt Megan's eyebrow twitched again. "And let me guess, you have a good explanation for why my carpet has turned into flowers?"

"'Lours," Bryn called out in his baby voice. He liked flowers and especially the bluebells that were grown by the Ambassadors Extraordinaire of Ingary. "Boo!"

"Yes, the flowers are blue," Morgan agreed. He had to think of something to do before Bryn started growing more in the living room. "Well," he stared out. "I believe that Uncle Gareth was going to surprise you…"

"Oh, don't you start with that, Morgan Jenkins. I know you are lying and I demand to know the truth. This did not happen by normal forces and an explanation is needed right now or I shall contact your parents and tell them that you have been very naughty." By this time Aunt Megan was starting to get blue in her face.

"Boo," Bryn cried happily, pointing at his aunt's face.

"Really, Mother," a softer, more likeable feminine voice said from the doorway, "How do you know that it was Morgan that did all of this?"

Morgan turned and gave his cousin Mari a relieved smile. Mari, much like her uncle Howl, had extraordinary magical gifts and Howl had recognized them and taught her how to use them. But the condition of their contract said she could never tell her mother about them and thus, Aunt Megan was completely in the dark about magic and how her living room ended up in such a state.

"Mari, do you have a good explanation of what has happened?" Megan's eyebrows both twitched this time.

"It is an illusion, Mother. You have been getting too much sun lately. I'm sure it is taking a toll on your health."

Megan's eyes narrowed. Mari gave her mother a bright smile before twirling her index finger in a circle. Megan's eyes glassed over for a second and in that second, Mari returned everything to its normal state.

"See, Mother?" Mari said as Megan blinked rapidly at having the pausing spell removed. "It was all in your mind."

Megan glanced around suspiciously before shaking her head. "Well," she huffed. "Don't get into trouble," she muttered at Morgan before leaving the room, muttering about bluebells and dogs on the ceiling and why couldn't her brother have normal children.

"Now," Mari knelt in front of Tegan and Bryn. "Let's go outside and we can make all the bluebells we want and no one will think it odd."

"Yay! Boo!" Bryn yelled.

Morgan smiled. Maybe visiting Aunt Megan wasn't that bad, after all.


End file.
